1. When your rates go up
Additionally, many car insurers practice something called “price optimization.” DeLong describes it as “charging people higher rates and premiums based on the likelihood that they will accept that and not shop around for better deals.” There’s more to insurance than finding a rock-bottom price. “You have insurance so that if a bad day happens, it doesn’t become a worse day,” says Stephen Crewdson, a senior director at J.D. Power.